Photo: SB Medien
BMW was the first manufacturer to introduce head-up display on a wide-scale production car. Sure, the first such system was first installed inside a 1988 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme but it was BMW that made it absolutely popular and what we know today.
Therefore, it would be only natural for the Bavarians to be the first ones to introduce the next step in driver assisting features: augmented reality.
It has been in the news for quite some time, and a lot of publications (including ourselves) thought that the new 2016 G11 7 Series will be the first BMW to use this revolutionary tech. Well, time passed, and the new flagship was launched without the famous feature that is not available (not even as an optional feature).
However, a new report from Spain claims that the first car to have this kind of tech will be the upcoming G30 5 Series. According to them, augmented reality will be offered on the new model and it will be showing a lot more interesting info on the windscreen of the cars, to help out with valuable information, without the driver taking his/her eyes off the street.
What augmented reality does is project all sorts of useful information in your field of view. For example, the system can project the separating lines between lanes if they are missing from the tarmac, can show you the distance to your next waypoint or even a pedestrian crossing.
On top of that, autonomous driving won’t be an issue anymore, being developed right now to work at speeds up to 80 km/h (50 miles) which seems like a rather odd choice.
All of these seem really impressive, but they would go against what BMW usually does. The Germans have a tendency to launch all their latest tech on their flagship (the 7 Series) and then have it all trickle down to other models.
The problem is, while this new approach might seem odd, it would be useful, in trying to keep up with the times. Technology and the car industry as a whole are changing at a much more rapid pace these days and manufacturers can’t afford to launch new tech every 3 or 4 years.
It has been in the news for quite some time, and a lot of publications (including ourselves) thought that the new 2016 G11 7 Series will be the first BMW to use this revolutionary tech. Well, time passed, and the new flagship was launched without the famous feature that is not available (not even as an optional feature).
However, a new report from Spain claims that the first car to have this kind of tech will be the upcoming G30 5 Series. According to them, augmented reality will be offered on the new model and it will be showing a lot more interesting info on the windscreen of the cars, to help out with valuable information, without the driver taking his/her eyes off the street.
What augmented reality does is project all sorts of useful information in your field of view. For example, the system can project the separating lines between lanes if they are missing from the tarmac, can show you the distance to your next waypoint or even a pedestrian crossing.
Autonomous driving and Apple CarPlay
The same source claims that there are even more new tidbits to be introduced along with the 5 Series. Coming out in late 2016, the new 5er will be benefitting from all the tech from the new 7 Series but will also add even more features. For example, they claim that Apple CarPlay and Android Auto will both be available along with laser headlights as an optional feature.On top of that, autonomous driving won’t be an issue anymore, being developed right now to work at speeds up to 80 km/h (50 miles) which seems like a rather odd choice.
All of these seem really impressive, but they would go against what BMW usually does. The Germans have a tendency to launch all their latest tech on their flagship (the 7 Series) and then have it all trickle down to other models.
The problem is, while this new approach might seem odd, it would be useful, in trying to keep up with the times. Technology and the car industry as a whole are changing at a much more rapid pace these days and manufacturers can’t afford to launch new tech every 3 or 4 years.
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